Why I'm Here
by Annabeth23
Summary: Between redesigning Olympus and building a house for her future with Percy, Annabeth's life can get a bit too hectic for her to handle. Can Percy calm her down and relieve a bit of her stress? One-shot Percabeth fluff...


"Annabeth!" I shouted as I walked into the mudroom after a long day at work. I threw my jacket onto the hook beside the door and looked up to see Annabeth walking into the kitchen that was built just beside the mudroom. She smiled weakly at me before entering the mudroom and giving me a quick peck on the lips. Then she wrapped her arms around me and buried her head in my chest, sighing deeply. I wondered what was wrong.

"Hey, Percy. How was your day?" Her question was muffled by the fabric of my shirt against her mouth.

"It was okay, but I'm worried about you, Annabeth. What's wrong, honey? What happened?" She refused to look at me. Instead, she started crying into my shirt.

"I-I'm f-fine, Percy," she spluttered. I was really getting worried now. Annabeth never cries. In fact, the last time I saw her cry was when I proposed to her, which was about three years ago now.

"Annabeth, look at me." She reluctantly raised her head and looked into my eyes. Tears were glistening on her face like tiny rivers shimmering in the sunlight, and her grey eyes were a bit red from crying. "What's wrong, sweetheart? Tell me why you're upset. " I knew she was just going to tell me everything was okay, so I added, "And don't tell me you're fine."

"Okay, w-well, I was at Olympus t-today to try and p-put some finishing touches on Hera's m-monument when she appeared beside me and began yelling at me about why it's taken s-so long for me to finish Olympus and why I-I built her monument l-last. Then she asked why I m-made Athena's better than hers when I was really j-just trying to impress Athena 'cause sh-she's my m-mom… So then I got mad at her and told her that I was trying my best to make Olympus as beautiful as p-possible, and then I screamed to her about what a sorry excuse of a g-goddess she was before immediately leaving the monument and c-coming here. So then I t-tried to do some work around here to get my mind off of what h-happened when I realized that there's so much to get done. I mean, I have to f-find a color for the walls in the family room, and then I have to actually p-paint them, and I have to get the t-tiles for the bathroom soon and the furniture for the living room…" Annabeth had built our first non-apartment home after our first year of being officially married together, so naturally she was constantly stressing over it. She wanted it to be completely perfect, and I kept telling her that the house didn't matter as long as we had each other.

Obviously, my attempts at relieving some of her stress weren't working as I had hoped.

"Annabeth, listen to me. I don't care what that stupid goddess Hera says. You're the smartest, most beautiful, most caring girl I know, and no cow woman can change that. Of course you wanted to impress your mom. When I fought Kronos, I kind of wanted to win so I could impress and honor my dad, too. As for her monument, you were occupied with some other issues on Olympus before you could get to that. Hera is just going to have to accept that she doesn't come first all the time. Don't listen to her. Half of the other Olympians don't, anyway."

She smiled weakly again, and I pushed a stray strand of blonde hair behind her ear. Then I leaned my forehead against hers and said, "And don't worry about the house, Annabeth. This is already one of the most beautiful homes I've ever seen, not only because of the fact that it really does look amazing, but because of the fact that you built it. Whenever I look around in here, I'm reminded of you and how much I love you, and no gorgeous family room or perfectly-tiled bathroom can make my life with you any better."

"I love you, too, Percy," she whispered in my ear. She smiled and said, "You always know how to make me feel better, Seaweed Brain."

"That's why I'm here, isn't it, Wise Girl?" I whispered back to her. Then I wiped a few tears from her face with my thumb before kissing her slowly, softly, and sweetly. She smiled and quickly began kissing me back.

And I thought to myself,_ Maybe, just maybe, my comforting speech worked this time. _


End file.
